Chris’s Story
I’m first in line for tickets when a new Broadway musical comes to town. In my free time, I enjoy singing karaoke and playing trivia with my girlfriend, Mindi. — Chris Johnson, 31
About
Chris grew up in a rural town in Indiana with his parents and sister. He discovered his love for singing in a high school drama club. These days, he hosts karaoke nights, plays trivia with friends, and joins his online group for Dungeons & Dragons sessions. He enjoys reading fantasy adventure books and curating his ever-growing Broadway musical playlist. His dream? To become a college professor, marry his girlfriend, and buy a house.
Overview
- Demographics: 31 years old, male, white, has a disability
- Housing: Rents an apartment alone in Fort Wayne, Ind.
- Health: Born blind, has anxiety and arthritis
- Education: Bachelor’s degree, wants master’s degree
- Employment: Substitute teacher, private music tutor
- Income: $22,000/year
- Transportation: ride-share apps, rides from friends, and public transportation
Learn About the Chris:
Chris’s Story
Chris Johnson is running late for work, but it’s not his fault. It’s 6:20 a.m., and the bus is late. He checks the bus app while his service dog, Stella, waits at his side. They are going to the high school where he works as a substitute teacher.
Chris, 31, has been blind since birth. He moved from his rural hometown to Fort Wayne to attend college and be near the blind and visually impaired community that resides there. He lives in a first-floor apartment about a 10-minute walk from the nearest bus stop.
“Living in a neighborhood with limited public transportation makes it hard for people like me to get to work on time,” he said.
The bus finally rumbles to a stop in front of him. Chris and Stella climb aboard. They’re behind schedule, but they’ll make it on time for his 7:30 a.m. start. Sometimes he uses a ride-share service when he has extra cash, especially in bad weather. But drivers often cancel when they see Stella, or they give him a hard time about shedding hair in the backseat.
“It’s illegal, but it doesn’t stop people from ignoring me or mistreating me,” he said. “I was robbed a few months ago while waiting for a bus. I still feel a knot in my stomach when I’m walking in unfamiliar places.”
The bus stops near the school. Today, Chris is covering for the history teacher. He earns income filling in at two schools when needed, and after school, he teaches the choir.
“Musical theatre has always been a huge passion,” he said. “I’ve loved it ever since I joined drama club in high school and sang in the fall musical.”
Some parents have complained about his disability and said he’s unqualified and a risk to student safety. Chris tries not to let it bother him.
After school, he checks his phone and receives a notification for a text message from his girlfriend, Mindi. She wants to know if he’s up for trivia and karaoke at a bar later tonight—the same place they met three years ago. Chris sends a voice note to confirm.
Chris loves Mindi and hopes to marry her. He’d like to live with her now but worries about how that would affect his eligibility for public benefits. For now, they focus on spending time together when they can and plan for the future. Chris is underemployed and wants to pursue his master’s or doctorate in public health. He’d like to become a tenured professor with a focus on health care access for people with disabilities.
“I’ve had to find my way through the system my whole life,” he said. “I’m pretty good at understanding how to navigate health care and ADA services, but I’ve observed so many ways people can slip through the cracks. Maybe I can make a difference — a more inclusive environment for everyone.”
Note: Chris and his story are works of fiction. His experiences represent circumstances real Hoosiers face every day.
Economic Stability
Chris loves his job, but he wishes it offered more stability and income. He works as a substitute teacher and choir coach at a middle and high school in Fort Wayne. Even though he’s been covering for a teacher on maternity leave, the school won’t provide a teaching aide to support him. Chris feels like “just a sub.”
A few weeks ago, a fight broke out in one of his classes. He heard the commotion—a student shouting, another being shoved—and quickly de-escalated the situation. Later, he contacted the parents of the student who started the fight. But the parents pushed back.
“How could you even know what happened?” they asked. “You’re blind. Our child isn’t safe if you can’t see what’s happening.”
Parents have raised concerns about his guide dog, Stella, fearing she might be aggressive toward the students.
His budget is tight, especially after unexpected expenses like when someone fed Stella without his permission and she got sick. To make ends meet, Chris offers private piano lessons on weekends. He visits the local food pantry when he can’t book enough sessions to cover his expenses.
Chris dreams of moving in with his girlfriend, Mindi, but he’s worried about the benefits cliff.
“If we live together, her income will be counted as part of my household income,” he said. “I could lose the public benefits I rely on to survive.”
Benefits cliffs refer to the sudden, often unexpected, decrease in public benefits that can occur with a small increase in income. [i] A worker might earn a raise and become ineligible to continue receiving public benefits despite not having enough to sustain their household.
Education Access & Quality
Over 86% of students with disabilities reported facing disability-related barriers to their education. Many were unaware of the services or accommodations available to them.
Chris grew up in a small, rural town with limited resources for blind people. His parents fought to get him the accommodations he needed, like books in braille. But even when the school agreed, the materials arrived late, if at all.
“I know my parents did their best, but it was exhausting for them,” Chris said.
He was eligible for support from a teacher for the visually impaired (VI), but that help was hard to come by. The VI teacher covered four schools across the region, so Chris only received support for a few hours each week.
“It felt like I was always waiting for something,” Chris said. “Waiting for the right materials, waiting for the right technology, waiting for my teacher.”
The school encouraged him to use assistive technology, but it was often outdated and didn’t meet his needs. Despite the challenges, Chris was determined to go to college. He applied for Vocational Rehabilitation services to help cover the cost of his bachelor’s degree.
11% of undergraduates in the U.S. have disabilities, yet a significant achievement gap exists between these students and their non-disabled peers in four-year institutions. [iii]
“I knew I wanted to teach,” he said. “I want to make sure kids have someone who understands what they are going through.”
His counselor helped him research universities the program would pay for, and the 21st Century Scholar program provided extra funding. He had to maintain a certain grade point average and submit his grades regularly to continue receiving support.
“It was a lot of pressure, but at least I had a chance,” Chris said.
Chris attended college in Fort Wayne, drawn by its growing community of blind and visually impaired individuals. He connected with the local chapter of the National Federation of the Blind and finally felt like he was in a place that could truly support him.
For the first time, he found it easy to get the accommodations he needed. Books in braille arrived on time, and the assistive technology was modern and reliable.
“This is how it should be in all schools for all students who need accommodations,” he said. “For once, I wasn’t constantly fighting for the basics. What if every child had the same chance?”
Living on campus also provided more transportation options than ever before. Paratransit services, ride-shares, and even non-emergency medical transportation made getting around much easier.
During his freshman year, Chris applied for a guide dog. Stella, a golden retriever, came into his life the following year. He worked with university housing to accommodate Stella in his dorm, and the process went smoothly.
Chris is seeking opportunities to earn his master’s or doctorate degree, studying public health with a focus on health care access for people with disabilities. Vocational Rehabilitation services won’t pay for education beyond a master’s degree, so he’s exploring loan forgiveness programs.
Health Care Access and Quality
About 2.5% of Hoosiers (68,190 people) have a visual disability. And 14% of Hoosiers have a disability of any kind.
Chris was born blind to a blind mother and a sighted father. His parents taught him how to navigate the health care system, giving him a high level of health literacy. However, Chris faces significant barriers when accessing care.
“Accessible information isn’t just a convenience for me—it’s a necessity,” he said. He constantly has to request materials in accessible formats like braille. This leaves him feeling excluded and frustrated.
Chris is in moderately good health, but maintaining it is a challenge. He needs regular appointments to manage his arthritis and often encounters medical professionals who display biases—asking questions like, “Who helps you do basic tasks at home?” or assuming he needs someone to fill out his forms.
During a recent hospital visit, Chris asked for an accessible version of a routine form. When they didn’t have one, he requested help, only to be told it was a “one-time favor.” These types of microaggressions happen frequently.
Chris also encounters challenges with his service dog, Stella. Although asking for service animal documentation is illegal, he’s been asked to provide it. Once, a doctor refused to see him with Stella in the room, citing a fear of dogs.
“I know it’s not personal, but it feels like one more thing pushing me out of spaces I have every right to be in,” he said. “It’s degrading.”
These experiences affect Chris’s mental health. He visits a therapist to manage his anxiety, which was heightened by a recent traumatic event when he was held at gunpoint waiting for a bus.
“I just want to be recognized as a capable adult,” he said. “Not someone who always needs help.”
Despite his efforts to stay positive, the repeated discrimination and microaggressions make it hard to trust the health care system. Chris feels many health organizations don’t consider people like him when designing their services.
“Sometimes, it feels like they don’t want me to be here,” Chris said. “But I’m not going to let that stop me from living the life I want.”
Disability inclusion means including people with disabilities in everyday activities, making sure everyone has the same opportunities as peers who do not have a disability.
Neighborhood and Built Environment
Chris’s Section 8 apartment is about 20 minutes away from the schools where he substitutes. While it’s close to some shops, there are no sidewalks, making it difficult for him to get around—especially on days when his arthritis flares up.
Finding an apartment complex that would accept his voucher and accommodate his needs was difficult. Some landlords tried to charge pet fees or claimed Stella was over the weight limit, even though service animals are exempt from those restrictions. The first-floor apartment isn’t fully accessible—its alcove tub-style shower isn’t ADA-compliant, which creates challenges for him.
His neighborhood is in a food desert with limited access to fresh food. Though his doctor suggested he maintain a healthy weight, especially with his family history of diabetes, finding nutritious options is challenging. He visits a food pantry when cash is tight and plans to grow vegetables in a patio container garden.
His neighborhood has high rates of poverty and violent crime, and Chris feels anxious when he’s out, especially since he was robbed while waiting for a bus. He often needs bus stops in hard-to-find or inaccessible locations, such as near construction sites. Bus service is unreliable and doesn’t run on Sundays.
Chris is eligible for paratransit services, which provide door-to-door transportation but are often late or hard to schedule. “I have to plan an extra hour into my day just in case,” he said.
Chris gets a ride from his girlfriend or friends when he can, but he feels self-conscious about asking for help. “People sometimes assume my girlfriend is my caretaker, which makes me feel like less of an adult,” he said.
Ultimately, these barriers make Chris feel vulnerable and anxious about his ability to be on time for work and appointments. “I wish I could hire a driver one day and not have to worry about all these obstacles,” he said. “For now, that’s out of reach.”
Less than 5% of U.S. housing is accessible for people with moderate mobility challenges. Less than 1% is accessible to people who use wheelchairs. [v]
Social and Community Context
Chris moved from a small rural town to Fort Wayne a few years ago for college, seeking easier access to resources. Although his parents live two hours away, he stayed in the area to be part of the community of people who are blind or visually impaired.
These days, he enjoys time with his local friends and girlfriend, attending karaoke and trivia nights at a bar. A few times a month, he plays an online role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons. Chris is usually the first in line for musical tickets, often attending with the theatre friends he made in college.
Chris’s girlfriend, Mindi, 30, is an assistant manager at a bank. They bonded over a shared love of music and fantasy books. Mindi and her family, who are from Punjab, India, love spending time with him and have become a huge support system for Chris.
Chris often feels self-conscious about asking Mindi for help. Strangers frequently assume she is his caretaker. Mindi insists on helping whenever she can. He is grateful for her support and the fun experiences they share, like trying new restaurants or planning future vacations. Still, he longs to feel understood and included in the broader community.
“Mindi and my friends have my back, and that means everything,” he said. “But I wish people could see me for who I am, not for what I might need help with.”
Resource Highlights
Depending on eligibility, someone experiencing these challenges may access the following resources and supports:
FSSA
- Blind & Visually Impaired Resources
- Indiana Manpower Placement and Comprehensive Training (IMPACT)
- Indiana Randolph-Sheppard Business Enterprise Program
- Medicaid for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled
- Medicaid
- MEDWorks
- Nonemergency Medical Transportation for Indiana Health Coverage Programs members
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
- Vocational Rehabilitation Services
- Division of Disability and Rehabilitative Services (DDRS)
- Disability Determination Bureau (DDB)
- Hoosier Care Connect
State of Indiana
- Emergency Rental Assistance
- Energy Assistance Program
- Find Your Local Public Housing Agency
- Indiana Department of Workforce Development
- Homeownership Programs
- Next Level Jobs
- Office of Work-Based Learning and Apprenticeships
- One Stop to Start
- Section 8 | Housing Choice Vouchers
- State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP)
- WorkOne Locations
